Biz Watch

Who Will Get Yukos?
What happens when a company can't pay its bills but is legally barred from selling its parts? Ask fallen oil giant Yukos, the erstwhile flagship of Russia 's economy. "We can expect bankruptcy before the end of 2004," Yuri Beilin, vice chairman of Yukos' board, announced last week, after a Moscow court upheld a Tax Ministry demand that Yukos must pay $3.5 billion in alleged back taxes for 2000. Another court upheld a previous ruling that froze Yukos' Swiss bank accounts worth $5 billion,